Our “Naturalization: An Un-Natural Process” webinar was released and is available for order and immediate download. The presentation focuses on American records. More information can be found on our website.
Not every immigrant naturalized. Many did, particularly if they wanted to vote. But before the early part of the 20th century a significant portion of immigrants to the United States did not bother with becoming citizens. Your ancestor may have been one of them. Just remember though that just because you cannot find a naturalization record for your ancestor, it does not mean he did not naturalize. You just may not be able to find it.
17th and 18th century documents are full of dating that may appear to be “off.” This document was dated Stow, Mass., 23 January 1746: 7. It’s 1747 in our modern style where the “new year” started on January 1. It’s 1746 in the old style where the new year started in in March. It’s not some other parenthetical notation, an abbreviation, or a stray mark or error.
Your relative died in 1850, but records indicate that his estate was not settled up and the farm sold or transferred to someone else until 1869. Don’t conclude that there had to be “drama” or some court action that you cannot find. It could be as simple as the family waiting until the widow had died or the youngest child reached the age of majority. Mother may have put her foot down and issued an edict that she was living on the farm until she died. The children could have decided to let mother have control and the money from the farm until she died. The heirs could have decided it was easier (and cheaper) to wait to “settle up” until all the heirs were of age and […]
We’ve said it before, but there are websites other than Ancestry.com and not every record is online. Doesn’t matter how easy the ads imply that research is or how complete they say their databases are. Don’t limit yourself to just Ancestry.com (or any other site–free or not). No one has everything. Get more tips in Genealogy Tip of the Day, the book.
Don’t forget to save those old envelopes. Sometimes the addresses can be just as helpful as anything else. This is especially true if the letter does not contain any addresses or does not include complete names. There may also be notes or other relevant information written by the recipient on the envelope itself. Remember that any piece of paper may contain a clue–and keep the envelope and the letter that was inside it together if at all possible.
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